Carols
''Carols ''is the first extended play by British-Canadian recording artist Josh Kingston. Containing entirely covers of Christmas music, the extended play was recorded in October 2013 and was released on 29 November 2013. Background and recording Kingston initially announced a Christmas extended play entitled Carols in June 2012. Recording began in October for a planned December release, however after the extended play's release was continuously pushed back, Kingston eventually decided to cancel the release of Carols in favour of taking a musical hiatus. In January 2013, Kingston said that he was planning on re-recording the songs that he had already covered and releasing Carols in the fall. For the next few months, Kingston did not announce anything regarding the extended play until August, when he announced that he was in rehearsals for Carols, saying: "It feels really weird to be singing Christmas music in the summer but I'm really excited to announce that I have started rehearsals for my Christmas extended play, which will be coming out later this year. More info coming soon". Banana Music Group announced on 16 September 2013 that Kingston had begun recording the extended play, however recording sessions were almost immediately postponed after Kingston fell ill a day after recording began. The following day, it was announced that Carols would be released on 29 November and would contain three tracks. On 23 September, Kingston revealed he had written an original song entitled "Cold Air" for the record, however the song ultimately did not make the final cut. Recording resumed on 1 October and was completed on 29 October. On 5 November, it was announced that the release of Carols had been postponed to 3 December. On 12 November, Kingston released "Baby, It's Cold Outside" as the album's first promotional single. On 24 November, the release of Carols was moved back to 29 November. The extended play was released for streaming via Chirbit on 28 November and was released for digital download via SendSpace the following day. The project received minimal promotion surrounding its release. "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" was serviced to Banana Radio on 15 December as a radio single and was released as the second promotional single on 24 December. The extended play did not generate any official singles. Promotion and release A 30-second snippet of "Baby, It's Cold Outside" was released on 11 November 2013 and the full song was released for digital download the following day as the extended play's first promotional single single. The extended play's artwork was unveiled on 28 November and the extended play became available for streaming via Chirbit later that day. The extended play was released for digital download the following day. On 10 December, Banana Music Group announced that "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" would be released as the extended play's second and final promotional single. The song was serviced to Banana Radio on 15 December as the extended play's first and only radio single. It was officially released as a promotional single on 24 December. A lyric video for the song was released the same day. Critical reception Carols received mixed to positive reviews from music critics. First Stop News gave the extended play a positive review, complimenting Kingston's vocals however criticizing the extended play's production and abbreviated length. Music Radar also gave a positive review, stating that Kingston's vocals "continue to improve, as especially made evident by the E.P.'s closing track, however Carols' lack of a true upbeat Christmas bop makes it a bit of a drag despite its curiously short length of just over eight minutes". Track listing #"Winter Wonderland" #"Baby, It's Cold Outside" #"Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" Cancelled follow-up In December 2013, Kingston revealed that his recording contract for 2014 would allow a "possible" release of a second Christmas extended play during the fourth quarter of 2014. This contract went into effect in February 2014, however Banana Music Group stated in April 2014 that a revised version of the contract had emitted the possibility of another Christmas record. In June 2014, Kingston stated that there would not be a second Christmas extended play "any time soon"..